More LCHS obfuscation

I wrote this a while back as a column, but other things have come up, and I haven’t been able to get it in the paper. So I’m posting it today as a bonus blog along with my usual Friday movie feature.

Here goes:

If you think I take any pleasure in giving the Lehigh County Humane Society a hard time, you’re wrong.I’m an animal lover who has had as many as three rescued cats at a time. I know the humane society does important work. I even spoke at its annual dinner one year.

I don’t criticize the society because I have some grudge against longtime leaders Bruce and Connie Fritch. I admire the dedication they have shown over the decades, as I have written more than once. I just defended them the other day on my blog from what I felt was an unjustified claim.

I don’t criticize the Humane Society because I have friends who work with other rescue groups. I know and like some of these people, but there’s more than enough work for all these organizations, and I see no reason to set one against the other.

I don’t criticize the Humane Society because I’ve been hoodwinked by propagandists or because I don’t know what really happens there. I think I have a clear picture, which I have tried to present fairly.

I mention those points because they’re some of the smokescreens I’ve seen from the Fritches and their supporters when I and others have been critical of their operation. These are designed to obscure the real issue, which is:

Successful organizations are open to new ideas and better ways of doing things. The failures tend to be the ones that won’t listen and adapt.

The humane society is an example of the latter. That’s why I criticize it.

You can see a good example of this in the recent flap involving LCHS and the Lehigh County Commissioners. The commissioners, troubled by new revelations about the society, by its unwillingness to become less secretive about its operations and in a couple of cases by the size of its bank account, voted 5-4 to deny the county’s share of funding for LCHS animal control operations, which amounted to $22,500. Individual municipalities pay their own share.

LCHS board president Bruce Fritch responded with a letter and then a press release, still not offering to let anyone review the shelter’s numbers, but threatening to end animal-control service and repeating the same tired complaints about “falsehoods, character assassination and propaganda,” while twisting the facts himself.

For example, his press release said the society sent representatives to the commissioners’ May 27 meeting in hopes of prompting the board to reconsider its decision.

“Unfortunately,” Fritch wrote, “ … the County Commissioners refused to hear what the LCHS representatives had to say; they applied a ruling that precluded any further discussion.”

That’s not what happened. The board gave Humane Society Treasurer Diane Jones the opportunity to speak. However, although she presented her case, she still wasn’t prepared to share specific numbers about their operation. Partly as a result, no one who voted against the funding was willing to change his or her vote, so it couldn’t be reconsidered.

Nobody “refused” to hear what she had to say. I know, because I listened to the tape. The society’s problem was that it didn’t send anyone to speak at the original meeting — where its critics turned out in force — and that it continues to stonewall efforts to see its numbers.

Enough with threats and distortions. This year is a lost cause — under the commissioners’ rules, May 27 was the last chance for reconsideration of the earlier vote — but the best way to restore that funding in the future is for LCHS to finally provide the board with a full annual accounting of the shelter’s admissions, adoptions, euthanization, low-cost spay-neuter, foster placements and whatever else the commissioners want to see.

If all is as it should be at the shelter, there’s no earthly reason why its leaders should be hiding these numbers, from the county or the rest of us. If Bruce Fritch thinks the numbers are misleading, as he has claimed, he can explain why.

And while I’m giving advice, I’ll add this. If the shelter wants to earn back the unbridled public support that such an important facility needs and deserves, it should overhaul its board and begin updating its operation to include, among many other things:

A comprehensive adoption program with convenient hours and an aggressive schedule of off-site adoptions, an extensive foster care program, a trap-neuter-return program for feral cats, a convenient high-volume and low-cost spay/neuter program and more cooperation with rescue groups.

I’ve mentioned all these before. But I’m happy to repeat them, because it’s important.

They’re the steps that must be taken to eventually make this a shelter that everyone in local government — and the communities it serves — will be proud to support. Right now, it’s not even close.

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Current Comments

I know another way the Lehigh County Humane Society could improve.

I have seen shows on Animal Planet that highlight other shelters and Humane Societies across the U.S.

The majority of those shelters assess the temperment of the dogs when they come into the shelter. They work with the new dogs to determine if they are food agressive and if they have issues with children, men with beards, other animals, etc.

They then actually use this information to place the dog in the most appropriate new home.

It has been a few years since I have been to LCHS, but they were certainly not doing anything like that the last time I was there. In fact, I found them to be completely silent about background information especially regarding the temperment of the animals.

I believe if LCHS had a program that assessed the behavior of animals and then they actually used that information to place the animals in homes that were most appropriate for them, there would be many more successful adoptions and fewer animals would need to be put down.

A lot more happy endings sounds good to me but I just don't get the feeling that LCHS would ever be willing to do anything like that.

Posted By: Paula | Jun 12, 2009 5:59:14 PM

I also had "in-house medical and behavior rehabilitation" in some earlier lists of things they should do, but I was cutting here for space. I agree the approach you suggested would be worthwhile.

Posted By: bill white | Jun 12, 2009 6:08:29 PM

My issues with them lie in the fact you must jump through hoops to prove your worthiness. My other problem is if they are concerned with the spaying/neutering, that should be done by them rather then threatening your responsibility after adoption. I don't mind paying more. I just don't want to pretend I'm Madonna trying to adopt a child from overseas. They should make adoption quick, simple and on the spot! Follow ups would be fine.

Years ago while we were attempting to deal with LCHS a friend had too many strays dumped off at his house. No farmer's don't like 5 cats a week thrown out by their barns! So we accepted two of them instead. A hunter had shot their mother to death while she was innocently sunning herself on a tree stump. Then 2 years later along came Salem. Someone obviously abused him and tossed him into our back alley. He passionately cried for two nights behind our house scared out of his mind. We really didn't want to, but we felt such anguish for this poor guy.

Despite his difficulties over several months adapting to our two, he's been with us now for 8 years. I didn't need the legal threats of the LCHS to do the right thing. We had him checked out, shots, and fixed on our own. In fact we just spent $1,100 on one of the most expensive colon fur balls I've ever encountered. The best part of all this is we saved 3 cats from the bureaucracy at LCHS if they even would have made it past the euthanasia stage to be put out for adoption.

Maybe they should have Karl Minor from the Humane Society of Berks County stay over for a few days and show them what they can do to make it as successful as his shelter has become.

www.berkshumane.org

Posted By: Linda G | Jun 15, 2009 3:29:51 PM

all I know is that my dealings with the LCHS have been extremely unpleasant and I will never give them another red cent until the Fritches and most of the present board members are gone. They do not go to pet related affairs to showcase adoptable animals, they do not outreach to the community as to low cost spay/neuter. trap/spay release, offer classes in pet care and obedience, etc. All things they could be doing to save lives but they refuse to change. When they are criticized they whine that everyone is against them. They believe it is easier to kill then to try to find homes and do low cost spay/neuter as well as educate the public. There is so much they could do with the money they have but they refuse. My last dealing with them a dog died because of their rude and lying staff. Fortunately that staff member left as well as the no nothing executive director, Alice Z. I sure hope this director is better but it would not take much to be better, unfortunately. The LCHS just does not get it and with the present board never will.

Posted By: jacqui hartranft | Jun 24, 2009 9:59:06 AM

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